This invention relates to prefabricated building elements and more particularly to prefabricated building elements having spaced end support columns formed from sheet metal with the interior cavity of the support column filled with insulating material.
Buildings have been typically constructed by erecting on the building site a wooden or metal frame on a concrete slab or other appropriate foundation. The exterior surface of the building can be brick, stucco or other conventional exterior materials. The interior surfaces are typically wallboard, sheetrock or plaster. It is also quite conventional to include any insulating material, such as fiberglass, in the cavity between the exterior surface and the interior surface of the wall of the building.
Another conventional method of building construction involves using prefabricated building elements. Various modules are fabricated in a manufacturing plant and then transplanted to the building site. Based on the design of the building, the architect and contractor can determine the number and sizes of the various modules that are necessary to construct the building. The typical modules that are prefabricated include the exterior wall modules, the exterior door modules, the exterior window modules, the interior wall modules and the interior door modules.
The use of prefabricated building elements allows an entire subdivision of housing units or an entire office or commercial complex to be fabricated in a manufacturing plant and then shipped to the building site for assembly. This mass production technique helps minimize the cost of construction.
It is an object of the present invention to provide prefabricated building elements that are easy to manufacture and are also easy to assemble on the construction site.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide prefabricated building elements that can be manufactured as various modules, such as an exterior wall module, an exterior door module, an exterior window module, an interior wall module and an interior door module.